Getting Personal
Muirsical Conversation with Dan Patlansky
Muirsical Conversation with Dan Patlansky
In 2014 award winning South African guitarist Dan Patlansky garnered deserved attention in the UK with his highly impacting seventh album, Dear Silence Thieves.
Introvertigo (2016) and Perfection Kills (2018) were no less impressive, featuring some feisty finger flexing and more delicate, slow blues tones across the fretboard of Dan Patlansky’s vintage Fender Strats.
(Said guitars have now been retired and replaced by a Masterbuilt Jason Smith Fender Strat, which cleverly doubles as a replica of Dan Patlansky’s much loved 'Beast' model).
Four years on and nearly three years in the making (a lengthy gestation period, of which the global pandemic played a not insignificant part) comes Shelter of Bones, an album that carries that trademark Dan Patlansky sound (bolstered by his new Masterbuilt Strat) but also takes a couple of sonic twists and a number of softer, texture laden turns.
Prior to embarking on his 10-date spring UK tour in support of Shelter Of Bones, Dan Patlansky took some extended time out to chat to FabricationsHQ about the new album, its lyrical weight and the personalised themes.
The noted guitarist also discussed the pros and cons of having additional time to revisit the album prior to its release as well as enthusing over his new Masterbuilt Strat and confirming his previous Strats, 'The Beast' and 'Old Red,' have found a good home in retirement.
But the conversation started with the upcoming UK tour and the logistics of preparing for a pandemic delayed run of shows...
Introvertigo (2016) and Perfection Kills (2018) were no less impressive, featuring some feisty finger flexing and more delicate, slow blues tones across the fretboard of Dan Patlansky’s vintage Fender Strats.
(Said guitars have now been retired and replaced by a Masterbuilt Jason Smith Fender Strat, which cleverly doubles as a replica of Dan Patlansky’s much loved 'Beast' model).
Four years on and nearly three years in the making (a lengthy gestation period, of which the global pandemic played a not insignificant part) comes Shelter of Bones, an album that carries that trademark Dan Patlansky sound (bolstered by his new Masterbuilt Strat) but also takes a couple of sonic twists and a number of softer, texture laden turns.
Prior to embarking on his 10-date spring UK tour in support of Shelter Of Bones, Dan Patlansky took some extended time out to chat to FabricationsHQ about the new album, its lyrical weight and the personalised themes.
The noted guitarist also discussed the pros and cons of having additional time to revisit the album prior to its release as well as enthusing over his new Masterbuilt Strat and confirming his previous Strats, 'The Beast' and 'Old Red,' have found a good home in retirement.
But the conversation started with the upcoming UK tour and the logistics of preparing for a pandemic delayed run of shows...
Ross Muir: Nice to have you back in the UK Dan and a great opportunity for us to catch up after way too long a time; but with various Covid traveling protocols still in place in different parts of the world I’m guessing flying over from South Africa to the UK for the tour wasn’t as simple to coordinate as would normally be the case?
Dan Patlansky: It was so difficult, because coming from South Africa, there were only very limited flights available. So, although the tour starts on the 31st of March a flight became available a week before then and I just took it, because I didn’t want to leave it too late; that would be just too stressful!
I’d rather hang around the UK not playing for a week, knowing that I’m going to be able to do the shows, than risk the possibility of not arriving in time; that was the for main thing for me.
But it really is a pleasure to be back over; I’m staying with my sister and brother-in-law, which is great; I’m getting acclimatised, about to jump into rehearsals with the band and ready to get it all going!
RM: Yeah, it’s been a long-delayed time coming. You’ve just semi-answered the next question, because I want to ask about rehearsals and how you managed to set that up…
DP: Well, I use a UK based bass player and drummer, that I’ve used for years, when I play here; I sent them over the tracks we’re going to be doing – the full live set-list – and they’ve been rehearsing them as just a rhythm section for the last couple of weeks.
We’ll go in, literally one day before the tour starts, and spend that day in a rehearsal or live room and put the whole show together and get it going.
Bearing in mind I’ve just come off a tour of South Africa doing the same set, so in my mind it’s pretty much together; it’s now just about lining everyone up for this tour and getting everything fixed for the UK shows. With these guys – Tom Swann on bass and drummer Ben Matthews, both great, great players – I’ve never needed more than five, maybe six hours of rehearsal; I figure we should be good to go after that!
RM: That’s quite the testament to your collective understanding and chemistry, even after such a long lay-off from playing with them. Usually you’re looking at two to three days rehearsal for a full set and hone it all down; you guys are clearly already on your way to creating that all important pocket.
DP: You just hit the nail on the head – the toughest thing to establish is that neutral pocket, because the pocket with my South African band, who are also great players, is slightly different; it has a different feel to the one I have with Tom and Ben.
So what ends up happening is we generally get through the songs quickly – because as I mentioned earlier I’ve already sent them the songs, how they change live and how they are interpreted live – but it really is about finding that pocket and playing the songs, with enough repetition, to start aligning that neutral pocket. That’s when the magic really starts to happen.
RM: And, of course, the new show features songs from the new album Shelter of Bones.
There’s no question your impact, and establishing yourself as part of the UK and European blues rock scene, was made in 2014 with Dear Silence Thieves, which was solidified and built upon with Introvertigo and Perfection Kills.
But Shelter of Bones is a sonically broader work with a couple more textures added to the Dan Patlansky sound. There’s also a lot of real-life lyricism here in what is your most accomplished, and clearly personal, album to date.
DP: Thank you man; that’s most appreciated. This album was really ready to go by the end of 2019; the plan was to release it in March of 2020 but we all know what happened in March of 2020!
When the entire world almost ceased to exist pretty much because of the pandemic I was told "don’t release it until you can tour it because otherwise it’s a missed opportunity."
If you’re going to tour, or when you do get back out on the road, you really want to have an album behind it.
Now, what that at gave me was this fantastic opportunity to revisit certain songs on the album and rerecord a few things I wasn’t happy with, including dropping some songs completely and rewriting a couple, all that sort of thing.
But that was a great thing and a terrible thing at the same time! Great for the obvious reasons, but when you get almost another two years to wrap your head around an album you start hearing things and over-analysing, to a point that you lose perspective of what the album is – to the extent that just before this album was released, I was convinced it was the worst thing that had ever been recorded by beast or man!
I just couldn’t hear it any more or hear what it was – so to get any feedback that said "yeah, this is a cool album," was a relief more than anything because I had lost so much perspective.
But I’m pleased I had that opportunity to really think about the album and put everything into it – like the lyrical content for example; writing about truly personal experiences and social commentary on what was on my mind over these last two years. That is certainly reflected in the final product.
RM: It is indeed. Any over-analysing has been far outweighed by the opportunity to revisit the album and, two years later, deliver it. It's an album that sounds like it has had time spent on it.
DP: Well, you know what it’s like – a band or artist is usually touring, touring and touring then it's a month off and "cool; let’s crack the album, because we need to get it going and get it done by this date!" 'laughs]
You do it to the best of your ability and that approach can have its upsides, because you don’t overthink things; but I don’t think I’ll ever in my life again have the opportunity to have two years to work on an album.
That’s almost unheard of!
RM: It is, courtesy of one of the few positives to come out of Covid-19 and the pandemic lockdowns – time.
Albeit that can be a double-edged sword in that you become like the painter who just can’t stop putting that last brush stroke to the canvas.
However as regards Shelter of Bones, and to expand on my earlier "sonically broader" comment, I think you stepped back from it at just the right moment and got the balance right between your personalised lyricism, the blues raucous side of Dan Patlansky and the more atmospheric, spacious slow blues.
As regards the latter I still maintain you shine best, and are sorely underrated, when playing slow blues – the nous to know when not to play the note, and when and how to express emotively.
DP: I’m so glad you mentioned that because out of all the hundreds of interviews I’ve done no-one other than you has ever brought that up.
My comfort zone, or the platform or genre I feel most comfortable expressing myself in, has always been a slow blues type of thing; that space and that vibe; it’s always been the most natural thing for me to do.
In fact, if it was up to me, I would do a forty-five-minute album of just slow minor blues! [laughs]; I really do have that much passion for it.
You also touched on another great point. An album, even with two years of messing around on it, you never – as the artist – get to the point of saying "yeah, we’re done; that’s the album!"
You never finish an album, you always abandon an album [laughs], but you do get to the stage where you think well, I’m going to start doing harm to the album if I add any more of those brush strokes, so I’m just going to kinda leave it there and move on with my life [laughs].
You have to get to that point, but it’s tough place to be sometimes.
RM: That’s true of any art. I pride myself in how I write and how I convey in the written word but there is not one article, feature, promo piece or review of mine where I don’t go back to it at some point – it might be the very next day or months down the line – and think "why didn’t I say that" or "why didn’t I emphasise this word or line instead of that one…"
Dan Patlansky: It was so difficult, because coming from South Africa, there were only very limited flights available. So, although the tour starts on the 31st of March a flight became available a week before then and I just took it, because I didn’t want to leave it too late; that would be just too stressful!
I’d rather hang around the UK not playing for a week, knowing that I’m going to be able to do the shows, than risk the possibility of not arriving in time; that was the for main thing for me.
But it really is a pleasure to be back over; I’m staying with my sister and brother-in-law, which is great; I’m getting acclimatised, about to jump into rehearsals with the band and ready to get it all going!
RM: Yeah, it’s been a long-delayed time coming. You’ve just semi-answered the next question, because I want to ask about rehearsals and how you managed to set that up…
DP: Well, I use a UK based bass player and drummer, that I’ve used for years, when I play here; I sent them over the tracks we’re going to be doing – the full live set-list – and they’ve been rehearsing them as just a rhythm section for the last couple of weeks.
We’ll go in, literally one day before the tour starts, and spend that day in a rehearsal or live room and put the whole show together and get it going.
Bearing in mind I’ve just come off a tour of South Africa doing the same set, so in my mind it’s pretty much together; it’s now just about lining everyone up for this tour and getting everything fixed for the UK shows. With these guys – Tom Swann on bass and drummer Ben Matthews, both great, great players – I’ve never needed more than five, maybe six hours of rehearsal; I figure we should be good to go after that!
RM: That’s quite the testament to your collective understanding and chemistry, even after such a long lay-off from playing with them. Usually you’re looking at two to three days rehearsal for a full set and hone it all down; you guys are clearly already on your way to creating that all important pocket.
DP: You just hit the nail on the head – the toughest thing to establish is that neutral pocket, because the pocket with my South African band, who are also great players, is slightly different; it has a different feel to the one I have with Tom and Ben.
So what ends up happening is we generally get through the songs quickly – because as I mentioned earlier I’ve already sent them the songs, how they change live and how they are interpreted live – but it really is about finding that pocket and playing the songs, with enough repetition, to start aligning that neutral pocket. That’s when the magic really starts to happen.
RM: And, of course, the new show features songs from the new album Shelter of Bones.
There’s no question your impact, and establishing yourself as part of the UK and European blues rock scene, was made in 2014 with Dear Silence Thieves, which was solidified and built upon with Introvertigo and Perfection Kills.
But Shelter of Bones is a sonically broader work with a couple more textures added to the Dan Patlansky sound. There’s also a lot of real-life lyricism here in what is your most accomplished, and clearly personal, album to date.
DP: Thank you man; that’s most appreciated. This album was really ready to go by the end of 2019; the plan was to release it in March of 2020 but we all know what happened in March of 2020!
When the entire world almost ceased to exist pretty much because of the pandemic I was told "don’t release it until you can tour it because otherwise it’s a missed opportunity."
If you’re going to tour, or when you do get back out on the road, you really want to have an album behind it.
Now, what that at gave me was this fantastic opportunity to revisit certain songs on the album and rerecord a few things I wasn’t happy with, including dropping some songs completely and rewriting a couple, all that sort of thing.
But that was a great thing and a terrible thing at the same time! Great for the obvious reasons, but when you get almost another two years to wrap your head around an album you start hearing things and over-analysing, to a point that you lose perspective of what the album is – to the extent that just before this album was released, I was convinced it was the worst thing that had ever been recorded by beast or man!
I just couldn’t hear it any more or hear what it was – so to get any feedback that said "yeah, this is a cool album," was a relief more than anything because I had lost so much perspective.
But I’m pleased I had that opportunity to really think about the album and put everything into it – like the lyrical content for example; writing about truly personal experiences and social commentary on what was on my mind over these last two years. That is certainly reflected in the final product.
RM: It is indeed. Any over-analysing has been far outweighed by the opportunity to revisit the album and, two years later, deliver it. It's an album that sounds like it has had time spent on it.
DP: Well, you know what it’s like – a band or artist is usually touring, touring and touring then it's a month off and "cool; let’s crack the album, because we need to get it going and get it done by this date!" 'laughs]
You do it to the best of your ability and that approach can have its upsides, because you don’t overthink things; but I don’t think I’ll ever in my life again have the opportunity to have two years to work on an album.
That’s almost unheard of!
RM: It is, courtesy of one of the few positives to come out of Covid-19 and the pandemic lockdowns – time.
Albeit that can be a double-edged sword in that you become like the painter who just can’t stop putting that last brush stroke to the canvas.
However as regards Shelter of Bones, and to expand on my earlier "sonically broader" comment, I think you stepped back from it at just the right moment and got the balance right between your personalised lyricism, the blues raucous side of Dan Patlansky and the more atmospheric, spacious slow blues.
As regards the latter I still maintain you shine best, and are sorely underrated, when playing slow blues – the nous to know when not to play the note, and when and how to express emotively.
DP: I’m so glad you mentioned that because out of all the hundreds of interviews I’ve done no-one other than you has ever brought that up.
My comfort zone, or the platform or genre I feel most comfortable expressing myself in, has always been a slow blues type of thing; that space and that vibe; it’s always been the most natural thing for me to do.
In fact, if it was up to me, I would do a forty-five-minute album of just slow minor blues! [laughs]; I really do have that much passion for it.
You also touched on another great point. An album, even with two years of messing around on it, you never – as the artist – get to the point of saying "yeah, we’re done; that’s the album!"
You never finish an album, you always abandon an album [laughs], but you do get to the stage where you think well, I’m going to start doing harm to the album if I add any more of those brush strokes, so I’m just going to kinda leave it there and move on with my life [laughs].
You have to get to that point, but it’s tough place to be sometimes.
RM: That’s true of any art. I pride myself in how I write and how I convey in the written word but there is not one article, feature, promo piece or review of mine where I don’t go back to it at some point – it might be the very next day or months down the line – and think "why didn’t I say that" or "why didn’t I emphasise this word or line instead of that one…"
DP: [laughs] I know exactly what you mean but that’s the beauty of it. In any art form – and writing is as much an art form as music, or fine arts, or painting, or whatever it may be – there is no such thing as perfection.
Perfection is in the eye of the reader or ear of the listener.
As the creator of that art, it’s the constant strive to be better at your craft; but that, I suppose, is what gets people like me and you up every morning – we want to be better; what we have just done may be good but we want to make it even better.
Now, if you were a collector, say a stamp collector, there could be a definite end if you collected every stamp in the world or owned the biggest collection in the world – that’s where you would stop.
In an art from that never ends, no matter what age you are; doesn’t matter if you are in your twenties or in your eighties, you can always improve; that’s the true beauty of it.
RM: Absolutely agree. That's also why I find myself in equal parts laughing out loud and equal parts truly disheartened when I read poor, amateurish writing that cites everything as awesome or ten out of ten.
My personal favourite is one from a year or so back where a reviewer signed off from writing about a debut album by a very young rock band by saying "these guys have just delivered a flawless album."
These guys, I assume, have now retired in their early twenties, sold their instruments and taken up that stamp collecting you mentioned [loud laughter] because where do you go after being told you’ve delivered a flawless album?
DP: That’s great [laughs]. There’s just no such thing as a flawless album but the reason for that sort of comment, for me, is that there’s no yardstick to measure an art form.
If you are in the Olympics and you run the fastest ever One Hundred Metres then it’s simple – you ran it and you ran it at the fastest time ever. But how do put the same sort of decision into an art form?
How do you say someone is the greatest ever songwriter, or the greatest guitarist, or the greatest bass player.
It’s all, as I said before, in the eye of ear of the beholder – and that’s what keep us ticking!
RM: To return to Shelter of Bones. I really like the way you opened this album.
Kicking off with the one-two brace of the biting and bristling Soul Parasite and the blues shuffle of Snake Oil City makes for an impacting start, especially as you get those real-world issues and social commentary lyrics in early – the former has an ire-edged vocal decrying two-faced leadership and the agenda of personal gain while the latter offers us further political finger pointing.
DP: I think that, being based in the blues, you have to get away from writing in the women and whisky type clichés.
For the guys that wrote that stuff that was their life – that was their experiences and that’s how they lived.
But for me, that would be a very false kind of world and I think in blues now, or any music genre, really, you have an opportunity to express yourself lyrically.
I saw Soul Parasite and Snake Oil City as platforms for a bit of social commentary on how I feel about certain things, like personal gain and leadership around the world; Snake Oil City was more specifically aimed at the South African Government at the moment.
And as I joke about, when talking about Snake Oil City, if you’re looking for content to write about, especially in a blues kind of vein where you want to have a moan about something, South Africa seems to be a bottomless pit of inspiration at this point, it really does.
It’s a beautiful country with the most amazing people and population but… well, you know as well as I do it’s now worldwide where politicians are taking the piss on certain things and lining their own pockets.
I just felt very strongly about that and believe if you feel very passionate about a subject or certain things, then that’s the right thing to write about and put into song.
I really tried hard on this album to write about stuff that was truly meaningful to me, stuff I cared about and, yes, just have a fat moan about it! [laughs]
But I really wanted stuff that hit home for me; those two songs in particular are very much that.
RM: Machiavellian politics and ever-shifting agendas are as much a pandemic as Covid-19; that’s the sad reality. I fully take your point about South Africa but there are many of us in the UK nodding in agreement and thinking yep; I know exactly where you are coming from – it’s a horrible thing to say but this is, in so many ways, a very unpleasant world right now.
DP: It is man, it really is, without a doubt.
RM: Which leads to the observation that the most famous and oft-used phrase in blues, woke up this morning, has probably never been more relevant or prevalent, but for all the wrong reasons – [phrases in a blues style] woke up this morning, saw the news and went straight back to bed…
DP: [laughs] Yeah, it literally is a bottomless pit of song lyric inspiration; it’s a field day for that sort of thing right now.
RM: Yes, there's a lot of people out there with a bad streak in them...
Perfection is in the eye of the reader or ear of the listener.
As the creator of that art, it’s the constant strive to be better at your craft; but that, I suppose, is what gets people like me and you up every morning – we want to be better; what we have just done may be good but we want to make it even better.
Now, if you were a collector, say a stamp collector, there could be a definite end if you collected every stamp in the world or owned the biggest collection in the world – that’s where you would stop.
In an art from that never ends, no matter what age you are; doesn’t matter if you are in your twenties or in your eighties, you can always improve; that’s the true beauty of it.
RM: Absolutely agree. That's also why I find myself in equal parts laughing out loud and equal parts truly disheartened when I read poor, amateurish writing that cites everything as awesome or ten out of ten.
My personal favourite is one from a year or so back where a reviewer signed off from writing about a debut album by a very young rock band by saying "these guys have just delivered a flawless album."
These guys, I assume, have now retired in their early twenties, sold their instruments and taken up that stamp collecting you mentioned [loud laughter] because where do you go after being told you’ve delivered a flawless album?
DP: That’s great [laughs]. There’s just no such thing as a flawless album but the reason for that sort of comment, for me, is that there’s no yardstick to measure an art form.
If you are in the Olympics and you run the fastest ever One Hundred Metres then it’s simple – you ran it and you ran it at the fastest time ever. But how do put the same sort of decision into an art form?
How do you say someone is the greatest ever songwriter, or the greatest guitarist, or the greatest bass player.
It’s all, as I said before, in the eye of ear of the beholder – and that’s what keep us ticking!
RM: To return to Shelter of Bones. I really like the way you opened this album.
Kicking off with the one-two brace of the biting and bristling Soul Parasite and the blues shuffle of Snake Oil City makes for an impacting start, especially as you get those real-world issues and social commentary lyrics in early – the former has an ire-edged vocal decrying two-faced leadership and the agenda of personal gain while the latter offers us further political finger pointing.
DP: I think that, being based in the blues, you have to get away from writing in the women and whisky type clichés.
For the guys that wrote that stuff that was their life – that was their experiences and that’s how they lived.
But for me, that would be a very false kind of world and I think in blues now, or any music genre, really, you have an opportunity to express yourself lyrically.
I saw Soul Parasite and Snake Oil City as platforms for a bit of social commentary on how I feel about certain things, like personal gain and leadership around the world; Snake Oil City was more specifically aimed at the South African Government at the moment.
And as I joke about, when talking about Snake Oil City, if you’re looking for content to write about, especially in a blues kind of vein where you want to have a moan about something, South Africa seems to be a bottomless pit of inspiration at this point, it really does.
It’s a beautiful country with the most amazing people and population but… well, you know as well as I do it’s now worldwide where politicians are taking the piss on certain things and lining their own pockets.
I just felt very strongly about that and believe if you feel very passionate about a subject or certain things, then that’s the right thing to write about and put into song.
I really tried hard on this album to write about stuff that was truly meaningful to me, stuff I cared about and, yes, just have a fat moan about it! [laughs]
But I really wanted stuff that hit home for me; those two songs in particular are very much that.
RM: Machiavellian politics and ever-shifting agendas are as much a pandemic as Covid-19; that’s the sad reality. I fully take your point about South Africa but there are many of us in the UK nodding in agreement and thinking yep; I know exactly where you are coming from – it’s a horrible thing to say but this is, in so many ways, a very unpleasant world right now.
DP: It is man, it really is, without a doubt.
RM: Which leads to the observation that the most famous and oft-used phrase in blues, woke up this morning, has probably never been more relevant or prevalent, but for all the wrong reasons – [phrases in a blues style] woke up this morning, saw the news and went straight back to bed…
DP: [laughs] Yeah, it literally is a bottomless pit of song lyric inspiration; it’s a field day for that sort of thing right now.
RM: Yes, there's a lot of people out there with a bad streak in them...
RM: I'd like to chat a little about the lighter and spacious shades we touched on earlier.
Lost is a beautifully emotive number and one that holds deeper, personal meaning, yet has the ability to resonate with, and touch, any of us who have lived – and lived is the operative word – through worrying or unknown times for our nearest and dearest; in my case my wife who had a serious health scare four years ago.
DP: You just hit the nail on the head again because that’s exactly it; the worry and the not knowing.
It was the same with my wife; in her case it turned out to a bacterial infection in her stomach, which a course of anti-biotics sorted right out, but it was those weeks and weeks of not knowing that puts you in the darkest, deepest place you’ve ever been; so you start thinking the worst.
The only good thing that comes out of that I guess is that you might be able to write a decent song with those emotions. Fortunately, it all turned out great but it was a very trying time; it really was.
And because it was one of the most trying times of my life so far, as well as for my wife and our kids, I thought this has to be put onto the album; it’s one of my truest and most honest expressions through songwriting and without doubt the most personal track I’ve ever recorded and released.
With a song like that you’re letting go and telling people about your personal life; but that’s cool, y’know?
I suppose the older we get the more we say screw it [laughs], here it is; it happened to me, I’m telling you the story and hopefully it resonates with other people, like it did with you.
RM: Similarly, you are lyrically very honest with I’ll Keep Trying, which carries a looking-in-the-mirror honesty about it. Strong as the lyric is I have to say I think your guitar playing, and phrasing, makes an even bigger statement; it’s gorgeously Knopfler-esque in places.
DP: Thank you man. Once again, to touch upon a point you mentioned earlier, that song is very much like a slightly altered, slow minor blues. That’s my favourite world to express through on the guitar, it really is, so that song came quite naturally when it came to recording the guitar parts.
Lyrically it’s as you say, about taking a good long look in the mirror, more than anything. It’s a tip of the hat to being able to say yeah, I’m well aware of my personal downfalls and it’s something I’m trying to improve on.
Musically I always feel that when you play a guitar solo, what you play in that solo has to serve the song; it can’t just be the guitar player thing where you just say "right, I’m going to play as fast and aggressive as I can for the duration of this solo!" [laughs]
That might be impressive to other guitar players but the message of I’ll Keep Trying is heartfelt and more subtle; I felt the solo had to reflect that message and pay homage to it.
Lost is a beautifully emotive number and one that holds deeper, personal meaning, yet has the ability to resonate with, and touch, any of us who have lived – and lived is the operative word – through worrying or unknown times for our nearest and dearest; in my case my wife who had a serious health scare four years ago.
DP: You just hit the nail on the head again because that’s exactly it; the worry and the not knowing.
It was the same with my wife; in her case it turned out to a bacterial infection in her stomach, which a course of anti-biotics sorted right out, but it was those weeks and weeks of not knowing that puts you in the darkest, deepest place you’ve ever been; so you start thinking the worst.
The only good thing that comes out of that I guess is that you might be able to write a decent song with those emotions. Fortunately, it all turned out great but it was a very trying time; it really was.
And because it was one of the most trying times of my life so far, as well as for my wife and our kids, I thought this has to be put onto the album; it’s one of my truest and most honest expressions through songwriting and without doubt the most personal track I’ve ever recorded and released.
With a song like that you’re letting go and telling people about your personal life; but that’s cool, y’know?
I suppose the older we get the more we say screw it [laughs], here it is; it happened to me, I’m telling you the story and hopefully it resonates with other people, like it did with you.
RM: Similarly, you are lyrically very honest with I’ll Keep Trying, which carries a looking-in-the-mirror honesty about it. Strong as the lyric is I have to say I think your guitar playing, and phrasing, makes an even bigger statement; it’s gorgeously Knopfler-esque in places.
DP: Thank you man. Once again, to touch upon a point you mentioned earlier, that song is very much like a slightly altered, slow minor blues. That’s my favourite world to express through on the guitar, it really is, so that song came quite naturally when it came to recording the guitar parts.
Lyrically it’s as you say, about taking a good long look in the mirror, more than anything. It’s a tip of the hat to being able to say yeah, I’m well aware of my personal downfalls and it’s something I’m trying to improve on.
Musically I always feel that when you play a guitar solo, what you play in that solo has to serve the song; it can’t just be the guitar player thing where you just say "right, I’m going to play as fast and aggressive as I can for the duration of this solo!" [laughs]
That might be impressive to other guitar players but the message of I’ll Keep Trying is heartfelt and more subtle; I felt the solo had to reflect that message and pay homage to it.
RM: The title track, which closes out the album, adds another colour to the Dan Patlansky sonic palate.
Shelter Of Bones moves from simple yet highly effective heart-beat percussion to a spacious and atmospheric arrangement, before building to, again, another emotive slow blues – but one with a wholly contemporary twist.
I don’t have kids so while I can’t relate to the parental shelter before having to watch them make their own way in an uncertain world, I can fully appreciate the larger concept of where are we going, and what are we leaving, for the children and the next generation.
DP: That's exactly why I decided to call the album Shelter Of Bones, because out of all the concerns I have, and all the stuff I write about, it’s really all about having two young kids.
They are small at the moment so we look after them, we have fun with them, we look over to see what they're getting up to [laughs], but one of my biggest concerns is when the time comes for them to go off and do their own thing. That for me is one of the scariest things I can think of!
Now I’m sure it’s the same for you, in the sense that when we were young the world was a different place; we had freedom and we also had safety; it was a different world!
But the thought of my kids getting to that stage when they are going out with friends, and doing their own thing…? I shudder to think what the world might be like then.
That’s pretty much what that song is about – in fact it’s almost like saying if I kicked the bucket tomorrow then this is my message, and advice, to my children.
It also reflects just about every other track on Shelter Of Bones because, for the most part, this album is a reflection of the craziness we’re living in right now; that’s why I felt it was a very fitting title for the album.
RM: I’d also add that it’s the perfect album closer. A recording artist and everyone from manager to label guy to producer and advisor and all the rest, can go round in circles about track sequencing, but every so often there’s that one song that has to be the impact opener or has to be the closing piece.
Shelter Of Bones couldn’t not be the closing statement.
DP: I’m so glad you agree, because when I was looking at a running order for the album that was my feeling too – how can we not close the album with this song? So, yeah, absolutely.
RM: I’d also add that, given the long and constantly revisiting gestation period, the personal aspect, what was going on at the time it was recorded, you’ll look back at this album in the years and decades to come as one of your most important albums as an artist. I truly believe that.
DP: I really appreciate you saying that; I really do. I know every artist in the world says "yeah, I think my best work is my last album" [laughs], which is natural, but I really do feel this album is in the direction I kind of want to head, musically.
I was in a management situation back in South Africa that was, to be honest with you, quite controlling.
When I say controlling, I mean in a creative sense – "you can’t put that song on the album" or "you should write something more like this song;" that kinda thing.
For me that was a very tough thing to write with and to work with, because in the back of your mind you are always thinking "well, management is not going to enjoy this song so I’ll just scrap it."
Whereas with this album, I just thought you know what? I’m going to run the risk of making an album that maybe no-one will like, or maybe only I like, but I’m going to go for it.
I was going to try my best to make an album as close as I could to the album that I wanted to make; I had no other people stopping me from doing that. That was a very liberating feeling...
Shelter Of Bones moves from simple yet highly effective heart-beat percussion to a spacious and atmospheric arrangement, before building to, again, another emotive slow blues – but one with a wholly contemporary twist.
I don’t have kids so while I can’t relate to the parental shelter before having to watch them make their own way in an uncertain world, I can fully appreciate the larger concept of where are we going, and what are we leaving, for the children and the next generation.
DP: That's exactly why I decided to call the album Shelter Of Bones, because out of all the concerns I have, and all the stuff I write about, it’s really all about having two young kids.
They are small at the moment so we look after them, we have fun with them, we look over to see what they're getting up to [laughs], but one of my biggest concerns is when the time comes for them to go off and do their own thing. That for me is one of the scariest things I can think of!
Now I’m sure it’s the same for you, in the sense that when we were young the world was a different place; we had freedom and we also had safety; it was a different world!
But the thought of my kids getting to that stage when they are going out with friends, and doing their own thing…? I shudder to think what the world might be like then.
That’s pretty much what that song is about – in fact it’s almost like saying if I kicked the bucket tomorrow then this is my message, and advice, to my children.
It also reflects just about every other track on Shelter Of Bones because, for the most part, this album is a reflection of the craziness we’re living in right now; that’s why I felt it was a very fitting title for the album.
RM: I’d also add that it’s the perfect album closer. A recording artist and everyone from manager to label guy to producer and advisor and all the rest, can go round in circles about track sequencing, but every so often there’s that one song that has to be the impact opener or has to be the closing piece.
Shelter Of Bones couldn’t not be the closing statement.
DP: I’m so glad you agree, because when I was looking at a running order for the album that was my feeling too – how can we not close the album with this song? So, yeah, absolutely.
RM: I’d also add that, given the long and constantly revisiting gestation period, the personal aspect, what was going on at the time it was recorded, you’ll look back at this album in the years and decades to come as one of your most important albums as an artist. I truly believe that.
DP: I really appreciate you saying that; I really do. I know every artist in the world says "yeah, I think my best work is my last album" [laughs], which is natural, but I really do feel this album is in the direction I kind of want to head, musically.
I was in a management situation back in South Africa that was, to be honest with you, quite controlling.
When I say controlling, I mean in a creative sense – "you can’t put that song on the album" or "you should write something more like this song;" that kinda thing.
For me that was a very tough thing to write with and to work with, because in the back of your mind you are always thinking "well, management is not going to enjoy this song so I’ll just scrap it."
Whereas with this album, I just thought you know what? I’m going to run the risk of making an album that maybe no-one will like, or maybe only I like, but I’m going to go for it.
I was going to try my best to make an album as close as I could to the album that I wanted to make; I had no other people stopping me from doing that. That was a very liberating feeling...
RM: Your management issues as just described make me recall vividly our very first conversation some years ago when we discussed your earliest albums; we both agreed that the Dan Patlansky musical story more accurately starts with the perfectly titled third album, Real.
The two albums before Real sound like producer led albums, or someone else’s idea of how you should sound.
DP: Exactly, those first two albums weren’t me at all. But you mature, grow a set of balls and eventually you’re able to say "I don’t like that and I do not want that type of thing on the album."
But when you’re a young artist, you’re wide eyed and bushy tailed; you’re thinking "well, this producer said this is the way I should do it" so you just follow.
But that’s not always the greatest choice I think, and it can hurt you.
But I learnt a lot from those albums – I definitely don’t listen to them any more though [laughs] and I cringe when people talk about them, but it is what it is. From there it was onward and upward.
RM: And now its onward and upward in the company of, I believe, a new Fender Strat.
Again, when we first spoke, we talked about The Beast, which had the neck of your beloved Old Red fitted to it, but it was getting close to retirement…
DP: That’s exactly right and it’s a great story.
I put that Beast guitar together from a hybrid of what was pretty much my favourite parts of my other guitars.
But, when I flew in to Hamburg to start a tour a few years ago, I didn’t realise that the wood in the neck of that guitar, which was pre-1965, was made from Brazilian Rosewood, which is like ivory in the world of wood!
You actually need documentation and permits for it, which I couldn’t get – so they nearly confiscated it!
So now I realise "well, I can’t tour with this anymore," plus the guitar was getting older and older and becoming more and more unplayable.
So I commissioned one of the Master Builders at Fender over in California to make me an exact replica of The Beast, with all the different parts but in a different colour, to distinguish it from the original.
It took three years to build, which was a long process and a long wait [laughs], but I got it in 2019, just before lockdown.
And I have to be honest with you Ross, it’s by far the best guitar I’ve played to date; it’s an unbelievable instrument and an exact replica! I really feel blessed to own this thing – it was definitely worth the wait!
RM: I’m so pleased for you, because I know how much you loved The Beast and how much of a Strat man you are. It sounds – in both senses – like you have found your perfect musical partner.
DP: Yeah, this is the one! And because it’s essentially new, even though it’s a copy of my older guitar, this one will be with me for the next twenty to thirty years. It’s great to be able to know that in the back of your mind and to know, as you’ve just said, that you’ve found your partner – so off we go!
RM: Now, please tell me, to bring this full circle, that you did indeed – as you told me you hoped to do – retire The Beast and Old Red, and hang them up on your wall…
DP: I did! In my home studio I’ve got The Beast and Old Red hanging up on the wall back there, so I can look at them and appreciate their beauty. When I’m home and not touring I stare up at them every day of my life!
They are virtually unplayable now but they invoke a lot of memories of particular shows and particulars tours, so they are active in that sense. They were great guitars and served me incredibly well.
RM: They did indeed, but now your UK fans get to see you and your new partner on tour when you play your dates in support of Shelter Of Bones.
Dan, thanks so much for taking time out with FabricationsHQ; best of luck with the album, enjoy the tour and don’t let that bastard of a bug bite.
DP: [laughs] Thank you very much my brother, this has been fantastic and so cool; I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. Everybody please take care!
Ross Muir
Muirsical Conversation with Dan Patlansky
March 2022
Dan Patlansky's Shelter of Bones UK Tour starts 31st March, with Special Guest Arielle (see poster below).
Tickets available from The Gig Cartel, Planet Rock and http://danpatlansky.com/shows/
Photo credits: Tobias Johan Coetsee
The two albums before Real sound like producer led albums, or someone else’s idea of how you should sound.
DP: Exactly, those first two albums weren’t me at all. But you mature, grow a set of balls and eventually you’re able to say "I don’t like that and I do not want that type of thing on the album."
But when you’re a young artist, you’re wide eyed and bushy tailed; you’re thinking "well, this producer said this is the way I should do it" so you just follow.
But that’s not always the greatest choice I think, and it can hurt you.
But I learnt a lot from those albums – I definitely don’t listen to them any more though [laughs] and I cringe when people talk about them, but it is what it is. From there it was onward and upward.
RM: And now its onward and upward in the company of, I believe, a new Fender Strat.
Again, when we first spoke, we talked about The Beast, which had the neck of your beloved Old Red fitted to it, but it was getting close to retirement…
DP: That’s exactly right and it’s a great story.
I put that Beast guitar together from a hybrid of what was pretty much my favourite parts of my other guitars.
But, when I flew in to Hamburg to start a tour a few years ago, I didn’t realise that the wood in the neck of that guitar, which was pre-1965, was made from Brazilian Rosewood, which is like ivory in the world of wood!
You actually need documentation and permits for it, which I couldn’t get – so they nearly confiscated it!
So now I realise "well, I can’t tour with this anymore," plus the guitar was getting older and older and becoming more and more unplayable.
So I commissioned one of the Master Builders at Fender over in California to make me an exact replica of The Beast, with all the different parts but in a different colour, to distinguish it from the original.
It took three years to build, which was a long process and a long wait [laughs], but I got it in 2019, just before lockdown.
And I have to be honest with you Ross, it’s by far the best guitar I’ve played to date; it’s an unbelievable instrument and an exact replica! I really feel blessed to own this thing – it was definitely worth the wait!
RM: I’m so pleased for you, because I know how much you loved The Beast and how much of a Strat man you are. It sounds – in both senses – like you have found your perfect musical partner.
DP: Yeah, this is the one! And because it’s essentially new, even though it’s a copy of my older guitar, this one will be with me for the next twenty to thirty years. It’s great to be able to know that in the back of your mind and to know, as you’ve just said, that you’ve found your partner – so off we go!
RM: Now, please tell me, to bring this full circle, that you did indeed – as you told me you hoped to do – retire The Beast and Old Red, and hang them up on your wall…
DP: I did! In my home studio I’ve got The Beast and Old Red hanging up on the wall back there, so I can look at them and appreciate their beauty. When I’m home and not touring I stare up at them every day of my life!
They are virtually unplayable now but they invoke a lot of memories of particular shows and particulars tours, so they are active in that sense. They were great guitars and served me incredibly well.
RM: They did indeed, but now your UK fans get to see you and your new partner on tour when you play your dates in support of Shelter Of Bones.
Dan, thanks so much for taking time out with FabricationsHQ; best of luck with the album, enjoy the tour and don’t let that bastard of a bug bite.
DP: [laughs] Thank you very much my brother, this has been fantastic and so cool; I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. Everybody please take care!
Ross Muir
Muirsical Conversation with Dan Patlansky
March 2022
Dan Patlansky's Shelter of Bones UK Tour starts 31st March, with Special Guest Arielle (see poster below).
Tickets available from The Gig Cartel, Planet Rock and http://danpatlansky.com/shows/
Photo credits: Tobias Johan Coetsee
